Not saying the OP case wasn't abuse, but your statement is just false.

The mini and micro USB ports on portable devices (all of them) are poorly designed and implemented. They are held on by 2 small solder points to the circuit board and a faulty solder job is common. I have re soldered the USB ports on 5 devices, and know of at least a dozen more that have failed on phones where there was no room to resolder it.

I think the point the OP was trying to make was that his device failed with what is a common problem throughout the industry and RIM wanted the cost of a new device to fix it.

I have had to replace the USB port on one of my PBs due to my own stupidity.
Your reasoning for an industry wide problem is flawed. The PlayBook's USB port has 4 through-hole solder mount tabs as do almost all the ones I have ever seen (not 2). Moreover, the PlayBook's USB port is also glued to the PCB with adhesive. (Makes it a bugger to get off when one has to replace it) Most of the micro USB connectors that I have had to re-solder on other (non BlackBerry) devices are SMT components where the re-flow oven obviously was not properly profiled so the solder connection is "cold".

Many tablets of similar cost and quality do not suffer that type of problem.

Many other tablets do not/cannot use the USB port for charging. I actually like that I have the ability to charge via the USB port so i only need to take one charger while traveling. I wonder, if the rapid charger was shipped with the PlayBook instead of the USB charger, would we be having this conversation?

Funny how outcomes can be so different for BB users. I am on my 6th bb phone and am a very satisfied 32 g PB owner since launch....with no issues at all. Oops wrong...I had a problem with the charger that came with PB. Easy solution to that was a rapid charging dock.. But if you are interested I have had very bad luck with Samsung, Cuisinart, General Motors and fedex to name a few. Have I been disappointed? Yes. Have I purchased another product from those companies? Yes, except GM and all is well. Stuff happens to stuff and we just need to deal.

Funny how outcomes can be so different for BB users. I am on my 6th bb phone and am a very satisfied 32 g PB owner since launch....with no issues at all. Oops wrong...I had a problem with the charger that came with PB. Easy solution to that was a rapid charging dock.. But if you are interested I have had very bad luck with Samsung, Cuisinart, General Motors and fedex to name a few. Have I been disappointed? Yes. Have I purchased another product from those companies? Yes, except GM and all is well. Stuff happens to stuff and we just need to deal.

Well by this logic, the ignition interlock in my car should break each year. However, it doesn't because engineers anticipate stress points and compensate for it despite the intense pressure to reduce costs. Does RIM place warnings in their manuals not to use the USB port because doing so will cause it to break?

If it is true that you need to treat a PlayBook with kid gloves so as not to accidentally cause irreparable damage -- and it seems to be the majority opinion of even the most ardent supporters here -- then RIM has a problem. Actually, I wish RIM warned me about that deficiency before I bought it. Many tablets of similar cost and quality do not suffer that type of problem. The person sitting directly to my right at this very moment (who happens to own an iPhone) made a remarkable quote: If iPads suffered this affliction Steve Jobs would turn over in his grave. I can't imagine anyone here making a similar comment about Thorsten Heins (accounting for the fact that he is alive and kicking.)

Why do you have this thought in your head that because YOUR usb port broke, that all usb ports on PlayBooks are defective and that RIM should put a neon sign on the box telling you the port is defective? I got a 16 GB PB shortly after it came out.....no issues whatsoever..... And then upgraded to a 64 GB model about a year ago.....no issues either. Just like you assumed everyone knew you were Canadian....do you expect us to know if your PB was in or out of warranty? Also, if you upgrade to the iPhone 5....here is the unofficial warning.....the back scratches easily and users have reported light leaks.

I did..and there is very little there lol. There was a few posts on XDA about it, but they also have been fixed or solved, which means they weren't really hardware issues. And some of the search brings up results from the Galaxy Nexus phone, but again, very little for problems.

With my PB (which no longer works), I can understand the frustration with the micro usb port. It's the ONLY device i've used (and almost everything I have is microUSB) where I was able to put the charger in upside down. Every other device I have I couldn't jam it in upside down even with some force..and yet for whatever reason on the PB, this was easily accomplished.

You gamed your charger in up side down. And that's Rims fault? PAY ATTENTION MAN!

I don't know, but this is just me...
Close your eyes and envision what I'm saying here...

There are plenty (countless) times I have went to plug my USB charger into my PlayBook and 9900, and felt some resistance.
I immediately say WTF? And, then turn the unit upside down in one hand, and look closely at the plug in the other hand to make sure the tapered edges are properly aligned.
Then after my confused 2 second look, it plugs in just fine. Then I take a quick look at the battery icon to see the charging lightning bolt.
Once I see that, I'm good to go.

Stevie Wonder can see that it doesn't fit the first time, and would turn the plug around.
Only forcible entry by the user would created a scenario where it would actually go in.
And, I'm not even sure about it going in, but just pushing the mechanics deeper into the unit.
But that's just me....

Why do you have this thought in your head that because YOUR usb port broke, that all usb ports on PlayBooks are defective and that RIM should put a neon sign on the box telling you the port is defective? I got a 16 GB PB shortly after it came out.....no issues whatsoever..... And then upgraded to a 64 GB model about a year ago.....no issues either. Just like you assumed everyone knew you were Canadian....do you expect us to know if your PB was in or out of warranty? Also, if you upgrade to the iPhone 5....here is the unofficial warning.....the back scratches easily and users have reported light leaks.

Oh and when you drop it (which you will, not being blessed with the gift of dexterity) the glass breaks and Apple will bill you for the repair. It being abuse and all. The bill will make the $99 look really good.

Why do you have this thought in your head that because YOUR usb port broke, that all usb ports on PlayBooks are defective and that RIM should put a neon sign on the box telling you the port is defective? I got a 16 GB PB shortly after it came out.....no issues whatsoever..... And then upgraded to a 64 GB model about a year ago.....no issues either.

I don't think the OP is insinuating that the USB port on EVERY single Playbook will break. I had my car recalled recently, because in some cases, the battery cover could go bad and cause a fire. My car never caught on fire, but I don't doubt there does exist a problem with the cover that could potentially cause a fire. If the design is bad, it's bad, just because one does not experience a problem does not mean a problem does not exist.

I'm certain RIM is well aware of the problem. Surely the OP is not the first and only person who's had this issue. There's probably some MBA at RIM who already did the cost benefit analysis of doing warranty repair on every potential break, and he decided it's not worth it. What I'm curious about really, is whether the USB port on the Playbook LTE has been redesigned at all.

The OP seems to be strangely absent from his own thread....hasn't come back here. Gee...I wonder why.....

Well, I was absent because I was happy to make the thread die, but apparently people feel the need to have the thread end on a flippant remark.

Let me bring everyone back up to speed...

(1) The USB on PlayBook broke within the warranty period even though I never abused the port and RIM did not stand by their product, they wanted me to pay the replacement cost of a PB. In my opinion, handling a device while it is plugged in is not an unusual thing to do. That is my opinion, deal with it. The port wears out because the charger that comes with the unit uses the USB port and the port is poorly designed. The poor design is related to the industry standard for the port, but it is also seemingly caused by the particular hardware that was RIM selected.

(2) Others in this thread have helped confirm some things. A material number of people have also experienced this problem and the problem occurs early for some individuals. Also, according to testimonials here, some people can abuse their USB ports without any problems and this variation indicates a quality control issue.

(3) The user-community here has as it's only defense that It is easy to unwittingly break the port and therefore it is the user's fault (Therac-25 anyone?). If experienced users start breaking devices by either handling units while plugged in or inserting cables upside-down, then it is like Apple telling people they need to hold their phones differently to make phone calls. (Oh wait, that's not what Apple did. They apologized profusely, held someone accountable, and offered a solution at no cost.)

(4) The USB and HDMI ports on PlayBooks are effectively not covered under warranty unless they were proved defective at purchase. YMMV but unless you know how to run the RMA gauntlet just right, then you won't get it fixed for free. Others have indicated costs of $50 and up (including myself, where the cost was $99.)

(5) The original purpose of my post was to highlight why there are so many die-hard haters here: I believe RIM has created a legion of their own worst enemies by constantly disappointing and disrespecting die-hard loyalists by ignoring them, failing to build a proper report with them and constantly misrepresenting availability of new products. Additionally, I posted this publicly in the hopes to bypass the marketing department at RIM (where do you think theins@rim.com really goes?) and maybe garner the attention of someone who can do something about RIM in general. I did not post here in the hopes that someone was going to call me to fix my tablet for free, although I have to admit that would be impressive.

(6) To highlight the problem that RIM will experience for the BB10 release: in the past two weeks alone, I have dissuaded at least a half-dozen people from considering BlackBerry as a potential brand of tablet or mobile phone with the mere statement: "I am currently not satisfied with how RIM has handled my complaint with a broken product." In all cases, these people immediately implied that this was all they needed to summarily dismiss the BlackBerry brand. Additionally, everyone I know in my age group does not use BlackBerry for their own personal needs, nor would they recommend one. I am the last hold-out of the people I know. I *was* willing to wait for a BB10 phone, but as previously mentioned in other posts, I can upgrade now and after this experience with RIM, I will not be waiting for the BB10 release. I think to be a good brand, RIM should understand this is occurring and show that they care, but so far I don't see how anyone could make that claim with a straight face. This is my personal experience, and it is anecdotal, make of it what you will.

In other posts you mention that RIM found out your HDMI port was broke too, and apparently the device had been scratched up (i.e. sounds like they were implying the unit has been abused). You also stated that you didn't want the HDMI port fixed, just the USB (which is weird, if one is a poor design that should RIM should be bending over backwards to fix, why not the other?). The standard "LIMITED" warranty does not cover abuse or neglect by the owner, only defects on parts. Link to the "LIMITED" warranty is below.

RIM had an extended warranty that you could have purchased that "includes one-time protection for accidental damage from handling, so if you spill your coffee on your BlackBerry PlayBook tablet and it isn’t working as expected, all you need to do is send it to us – and if we can’t fix it, we’ll send you a replacement BlackBerry PlayBook tablet (subject to applicable Terms and Conditions). Talk about peace of mind!" Link to that is below:

I purchased this warranty in case I F'd up (and wanted to make sure my $699 tablet had some extra protection).

So it sounds like RIM has determined that your Playbook has that both of the external connectivity ports are broken, sees the unit has external cosmetic abuse in addition to the two ports, and has ruled the is issue is because of neglect and/or misuse by the owner (sorry but two ports that have similar cables type connections failing is not a coincidence), and therefore not covered by the "LIMITED WARRANTY". They are offering to fix the unit for $99 which is about standard for some sort of electronics repair. It does suck to have something you bought break, but if companies fixed everything that broke because of some neglect on the owners part, then no one would take care of their stuff and warranty repair cost burden for the manufacturer would skyrocket, dramatically increasing the cost of all devices. Sad that you are turning away potential customers due to an issue that seems clearly based on owner neglect/abuse, but this type of bad publicity will occur with just about anything made and bought by individuals who won't accept personal responsibility for something. Perhaps it is time for them to return it to you so you can make that film you mention in another post that will show you destroying the Playbook (which can be fixed for $99 and probably have a productive rest of life or you could sell on ebay and get something back), and finish with you purchasing an GS3! #FIRSTWORLDPROBLEMS

In other posts you mention that RIM found out your HDMI port was broke too, and apparently the device had been scratched up (i.e. sounds like they were implying the unit has been abused). You also stated that you didn't want the HDMI port fixed, just the USB (which is weird, if one is a poor design that should RIM should be bending over backwards to fix, why not the other?). The standard "LIMITED" warranty does not cover abuse or neglect by the owner, only defects on parts. Link to the "LIMITED" warranty is below.

RIM had an extended warranty that you could have purchased that "includes one-time protection for accidental damage from handling, so if you spill your coffee on your BlackBerry PlayBook tablet and it isnt working as expected, all you need to do is send it to us and if we cant fix it, well send you a replacement BlackBerry PlayBook tablet (subject to applicable Terms and Conditions). Talk about peace of mind!" Link to that is below:

I purchased this warranty in case I F'd up (and wanted to make sure my $699 tablet had some extra protection).

So it sounds like RIM has determined that your Playbook has that both of the external connectivity ports are broken, sees the unit has external cosmetic abuse in addition to the two ports, and has ruled the is issue is because of neglect and/or misuse by the owner (sorry but two ports that have similar cables type connections failing is not a coincidence), and therefore not covered by the "LIMITED WARRANTY". They are offering to fix the unit for $99 which is about standard for some sort of electronics repair. It does suck to have something you bought break, but if companies fixed everything that broke because of some neglect on the owners part, then no one would take care of their stuff and warranty repair cost burden for the manufacturer would skyrocket, dramatically increasing the cost of all devices. Sad that you are turning away potential customers due to an issue that seems clearly based on owner neglect/abuse, but this type of bad publicity will occur with just about anything made and bought by individuals who won't accept personal responsibility for something. Perhaps it is time for them to return it to you so you can make that film you mention in another post that will show you destroying the Playbook (which can be fixed for $99 and probably have a productive rest of life or you could sell on ebay and get something back), and finish with you purchasing an GS3! #FIRSTWORLDPROBLEMS

You guys seem to be suffering from the same affliction as RIM's senior management.

At no point did I say my HDMI port was broken. I never use it. The statement was that the two ports are part of the same assembly ans both must be replaced. The person originally handling my call implied that I would be getting a new HDMI and since it had some scratches on it, I should be grateful of the additional renovation that I will receive.

To be certain, I was never made aware of any extended warranty I could purchase nor did anyone ask me if I had it.

For the person who posted the vancouversun link, can you summarize the content? I have no browser on my storm2 that can render that website at all.

You guys seem to be suffering from the same affliction as RIM's senior management.

And he ducks yet again. Why are you so chicken to write Thorsten? Why are you so afraid to reply what your response is? Are you afraid he might - oh - fix your problem? Or want to know your experience?

So, why are you upset? Because RIM wouldn't fix your out of warranty device for free or??? You have a great rant but for what purpose?? Are you trying to convince us that BB is the only device that breaks?